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RAC1 GTPase activating protein (GAP) that binds and deforms membranes, and regulates actin dynamics to regulate cell migration and differentiation. Plays an important role in different aspects of neuronal morphogenesis and migration mainly during development of the cerebral cortex. This includes the biogenesis of neurites, where it is required for both axons and dendrites outgrowth, and the maturation of the dendritic spines. Also stimulates the branching of the leading process and negatively regulates neuron radial migration in the cerebral cortex. Its interaction and inhibition by SRGAP2C reduces the rate of spine maturation, alters dendritic spine morphology and density and indirectly increases neuronal migration. It may have implications for cognition, learning and memory. In non-neuronal cells, it may also play a role in cell migration by regulating the formation of lamellipodia and filopodia.

This locus encodes a member of the SLIT-ROBO Rho GTPase activating protein family. The encoded protein stimulates GTPase activity of Rac1, and plays a role in cortical neuron development. This locus has several paralogs on human chromosome 1 resulting from segmental duplication. While this locus itself is conserved among various species, the paralogs are found only in the genus Homo, and not in the genomes of non-human great apes. Alternatively spliced transcript variants have been described for this locus. [provided by RefSeq, Jul 2014]

Gene RIF (11)

Results uncover a new function for ancestral SRGAP2 in promoting dendritic spine maturation and indicate that expression of a human-specific paralog of SRGAP2 in mouse pyramidal neurons extends the phase of spine development and leads to an increased density of longer spines in vivo, a feature characterizing pyramidal neurons in the human neocortex

SRGAP2 has been highly conserved over mammalian evolution, and human is the only lineage wherein gene duplications have occurred. Our analysis indicates that the duplications spread across 80 Mbp of chromosome 1 at a time corresponding to the transition from Australopithecus to Homo.